Travel: Trinidad & Tobago

By Richard C. Morais

This article was written by J.R. Brandstrader

Tired of biblical weather? We recommend colorful Trinidad & Tobago, the twin volcanic islands at the southern tip of the Caribbean archipelago off the coast of Venezuela. The islands are below the hurricane belt, so nasty weather surprises are less likely than, say, New York.

For some the trip to Trinidad & Tobago is best at Carnival, the February blowout leading into Lent; for others, it’s the summer months when the leatherback turtle is nesting on Trinidad’s Grande Riviere Beach. (Hotels will wake you up at any hour to watch the magic birth of a new turtle.) We think the ideal time for the islands is slow-paced December.

The rains have abated; December’s temperatures range from 72 to 85 degrees. The popular Maracas Beach is not crowded. You can explore the Paria Falls on Trinidad’s north coast, or the island’s Aripo cave system, and then deep sea dive off Speyside. Not your thing? Try the golf at Trinidad’s Millennium Lakes Golf & Country Club, a PGA-designed par 71 championship course, or over on Tobago Plantations’ PGA-designed golf course.

Courtesy of Island Experiences

Scarlet Ibis coming home to roost.

Kids with looming science projects will get a leg up over their Christmas break. That’s because T & T is home to one of the oldest protected rainforests in the New World. In 1776, the British Parliament decided that the Main Ridge Forest Reserve, which lies along the island’s central mountain spine, needed to be preserved for future generations. This extraordinarily forward-looking move has given the rest of us a unique opportunity to spy on flora and fauna of great biodiversity.

The island’s proximity to the Orinoco River Delta (you can actually swim to Venezuela) makes the islands a haven for birds. About 450 species have been spotted. Hikes through the Asa Wright Nature Centre on Trinidad, or the Main Ridge Forest Preserve in Tobago, turn into wonderful photo opportunities for kids to put a snap up on the board of their science projects.

We took a boat tour of Trinidad’s Caroni Swamp, where you can photograph the silky anteaters, or boa constrictors sleeping in the branches of mangroves above your head. The climax of the tour was nature’s equivalent of a Broadway Show. The tour guide brought the boat into open water opposite the Caroni Bird Sanctuary just before dusk; we watched thousands of Scarlet Ibis come home to roost in a clump of red mangrove trees for the night. By dusk, the island looked like a decorated Christmas tree lying on its side.

Trinidad & Tobago are not like their Caribbean neighbors in several ways. Christopher Columbus landed there on his third tour in 1498, but the gold-obsessed Spanish were not that interested in the islands. Then the French, Dutch and English vying to establish cash crop plantations fought over the lush islands. Blackbeard, the pirate, famously terrorized its coast, while Sir Walter Raleigh used the asphalt from Trinidad’s Pitch Lake at La Brea — a 95 acre lake of tar that is 350 feet deep — to patch his ships. Today, much of the asphalt ends up paving Chinese roads.

The islands are also the birthplace of the writer, V. S. Naipaul, winner of the 2001 Nobel Prize in Literature. More than half the population is at least part Indian. Sugar, coffee and cocoa barons once ruled but these days the islands are wealthy because of abundant oil and natural gas reserves, most of which is shipped to the U.S. The nation’s capital in Port of Spain will remind some of Brooklyn’s most diverse neighborhoods. Timid souls might find it a little rough in pockets. We loved it.

Trinis have “sweet hands,” which means they know how to cook. The islands have a fascinating mixed cuisine featuring coconuts, curries and pepper-sauces influenced by the large populations of Indians, Africans and Chinese. Our favorites: Chaud Creole which dishes up tasty callaloo (a local curry), corn soup, and rice pelau. Ali’s Roti Shop, in St. James, is well-known for its delicious roti, a flat bread filled with curried chicken, duck or shrimp. But whatever you do, don’t miss the “bake & shark” (a fried shark sandwich on homemade bread) at one of the beach shacks. Trinis love to talk about their food; ask someone to guide you through the sandwich toppings.

Because the islands don’t particularly promote tourism, you will find mostly business travelers from U.S. stay at the Hyatt Regency Trinidad, which is right on the Gulf of Paria in downtown Port of Spain, the nation’s capital, near the Parliament and Supreme Court. A plunge in the rooftop infinity pool at dawn is a must. A serene open-air restaurant means you can watch the sunset while listening to calypso.

Another luxury hotel on the island is the competitively priced five-star boutique hotel, Carlton Savannah, which is adjacent to the Queen’s Park Savannah, a former sugar plantation. Enjoy the authentic Northern Indian dinner at nearby Apsara, named for dancers who are said to move between heaven and earth, creating joy. We loved the
Lamb Rogan Josh and Goam Lobster Curry.

Courtesy of Island Experiences

Nylon Pool off of Tobago.

From the centrally-located Hyatt, you can walk to the Botanical Gardens. The shopping district also is just a short stroll away, which is a good thing since Trinidad’s traffic jams are mind-numbing. Gas is less than a $1 US a gallon; everyone owns a car. At least one driver at St. Christopher Taxi Co-Op Society Ltd. provides his Towncar passengers internet access and play stations because of the traffic delays. The public transportation system consists of buses. Don’t even go there.

But other than that, Trinidad is a pretty fine place to forget about school runs, work stress, and snow storms. So is the 116-acre Tobago, a quick flight away on Caribbean Airlines. Not that chilling comes easy to us New Yorkers. We spent an excruciating plane delay with a sturdy fellow in dreadlocks. He just pulled his hat over his face and slept. Once on the plane, we noticed he had a smile for everyone who came up to say “hi.” It turned out he was the renowned reggae artist Luciano,known to stay at Coco Reef on occasion.

Tobago’s Coco Reef Resort and Spa at Crown Point has a pool and private beach. Its breakwater provides an especially quiet swimming hole where teenagers have the freedom to come and go. They’ll also enjoy a glass boat ride on a blazing afternoon to the Boccoo Reef, a living-coral barrier reef, home to giant manta rays, groupers, and sharks. The fish are running in December, so avid fishermen should check out the boat charters available all over the islands.

The islands have historically been racial melting pots, so perhaps no surprise that Tobago is a favorite get-away for locals (people actually commute between the two islands), as well as Europeans, especially Brits and Germans. Don’t be surprised to find a completely veiled Muslim woman snorkeling next to you.

In the end, we found there were few things more relaxing than a swim in Nylon Pool, a huge, shallow, white sand pool in the middle of the sea off Pigeon Point. Lore has it that a dip in the pool takes 10 years off your appearance. They say, if you kiss your lover in Nylon Pool you will be together forever. And here yet another reason to take your kids to Trinidad & Tobago over the holidays: if teenagers swim in the pool, legend has it, they come out five years wiser. How marvelous.

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There are 9 comments

NOVEMBER 4, 2012 11:13 A.M.

HA wrote:

Trinidad and Tobago are NOT volcanic islands.

NOVEMBER 4, 2012 11:52 A.M.

Samuel wrote:

Hey yeah...T&T are not volcanic islands and callaloo is not a 'local curry' lol!!! Good article nonetheless! Sweet TnT... )

NOVEMBER 4, 2012 2:23 P.M.

Giselle wrote:

This article is not totally correct...e.g The Oldest Protected rain forest in the hemisphere is in Tobago and not Trinidad...

NOVEMBER 5, 2012 7:58 A.M.

J.R. wrote:

Trinidad has mud volcanoes and Tobago is has volcanic origins. The protected rain forest is most certainly in Tobago as is clearly stated in the 5th paragraph. But I don’t see any point in getting into a discussion about a wonderful dish that is as varied as the hard working “sweet hands” that create it. I hope more people get a chance to try it.

NOVEMBER 5, 2012 2:43 P.M.

Anonymous wrote:

Sounds like a Great Place to visit. How affordable is it? Hotel rates were not discussed, suggesting that in spite of $1.00/gallon gasoline, it may still be an expensive resort area during the high tourist season.

NOVEMBER 5, 2012 3:13 P.M.

rudy wrote:

No US aid in Trinidad and Tobago,,,, It's very nice..

NOVEMBER 6, 2012 7:23 A.M.

Anonymous wrote:

some inaccuracies, but a good article. next time i invite the author to experience our varied forms of music. we gave the world, the gifts of steel pan and calypso. we also have perfected chutney and soca music. carnival in T&T is second to none. maybe we should get nat geo to do some documentaries on these two islands.

NOVEMBER 8, 2012 1:21 P.M.

TiredOfFlippingTheBill wrote:

I think that you would have to be a very very good swimmer to swim that far.

NOVEMBER 26, 2012 10:22 P.M.

Marc wrote:

In Trinidad, hotel rates can be high as they're aimed mainly at business travellers - often those in the energy sector - and because the supply is quite limited. We just don't have very many hotel-staying tourists. There are a lot more options in Tobago.

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Written with Barron’s wit and often contrarian perspective, Penta provides the affluent with advice on how to navigate the world of wealth management, how to make savvy acquisitions ranging from vintage watches to second homes, and how to smartly manage family dynamics.

Richard C. Morais, Penta’s editor, was Forbes magazine’s longest serving foreign correspondent, has won multiple Business Journalist Of The Year Awards, and is the author of two novels: The Hundred-Foot Journey and Buddhaland, Brooklyn. Robert Milburn is Penta’s reporter, both online and for the quarterly magazine. He reviews everything from family office regulations to obscure jazz recordings.